Reviews from

The Butterflies

Sulfur Butterflies on Hibiscus Flower

12 total reviews 
Comment from bedo92000


Those are some neat looking butterflies. I have never seen ones like them. This has beautiful color with the red, green, yellow, and blue. I think it would look better if you cropped off some of the blue sky. But it is beautiful.

 Comment Written 12-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 12-Sep-2008
    Thank you so much for your review and your suggestion. You are in large company with it. I have sebveral cropping of the picture. But I decided against it. That doesn't mean I'm right. But for me cropping didn't work. I got some kind of claustrophobic seeing it. It looses some of the feeling of free nature. It looked good but it looked somehow like a shot in a butterfly sanctuary bud not in my garden.
    [The butterflies are very common here in the tropics. The unusual is the fact that three of them on one flower with a different colored in the middle.]
Comment from Dazzleme


Great angle for this. Your presentation is good with the hibiscus against the blue of the sky. I find your focus is a bit soft here though.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you for your very kind review. The focus softness. I know it seams as if it is the focus but I don;t think so. It's the light.[An ongoing problem here in the tropics] There was to much of it. It is reflecting back from the wings of the front butterfly and below it. That's what harmed the focus. I had to take the compromise. I was using a filter and the sun cover around the lens already it's still to much light. I had the choice take a not so perfect picture of this unusual event or no picture at all.
reply by Dazzleme on 10-Sep-2008
    That is to bad about the light. There are many different types of compensation for that. Sounds like you were trying to keep the light under control. Sometimes we cannot always count on all the factors we take for granted when it comes to a photo as being ideal for the conditions we have to deal with. I have this happen so much!
reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Right. It is nature we have to deal with it.
Comment from ZenTrip


Exquisite. What a beautiful quote from Hans Christian Anderson. And so fitting.

Interesting that butterflies are also your childhood symbol of summer.

The grouping of three butterflies seem to fill in around the red flower and become a part of it. Somewhat as if to fill in the edges with their presence of freedom and gift to the flower for the nourishment they are receiving.

The balance and harmony of the yellow wings on either side of the darker butterfly and the composition they make to the photo lifts this several notches above the typical pretty butterfly shot.

Full of symbolism and meaning.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you so much for your beautiful critic and the six stars but did you see something not quite right? I do. There was almost to much light. [An ongoing problem in the tropics] I had to use a filter and the sun cover around the lens. Still it is flashing back from the front butterfly and the little leaf below it. But there is were we have to make a compromise. Nothing I know of I could have done then don't take the photo and that is a prise way to high. Thanks for seeing the unusual set of butterflies with the two yellows flanking the white-gray. Not many people realise that! You have seen again the message were many only see some butterflies. So nice as the six stars are that is more important to me. Thank you.
reply by ZenTrip on 10-Sep-2008
    I did see the light from the small leaf below - but it didn't seem to be of major significance. But I don't seem to catch the light you speak of from the butterfly wing. Sometimes I get caught up in the emotion and message of a photo and may neglect some finer points of technique. That is a problem for me and I just have to admit it. I hope it doesn't weaken my reviewing too much. I like photos that have impact and sometimes may compromise too much in letting that be a major decision in how I feel about the worth of a photo.

    I'll keep working on reviewing skills and get better - just don't get tired of helping me see better. Thanks so much, Cleo.
Comment from Photopeb


Initial impact 5
creativity of presentation 5
color harmony 5
center of interest 5
technical excellence 41/2
technique 5
stroy telling ability 41/2
lighting 5

Very well done with excellent colors, very crisp and viberent.
Good composition and and excellent details. Lighting and exposure and very nice.

Congrats and thanks for sharing....

Paul E Brumit

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you so much for your kind review and the generous rating.
Comment from Lynseey


A beautiful photo, great colors, nice background sky, maybe too much of a good thing, crop it down a bit and your butterfly will show up better. A beautiful shot all in all, thanks for sharing this!

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thanks for viewing your kind comments and suggestions. I have cropped versions of it even one quadratically but I decided against. The message that it was captured in free nature got lost with the sky gone and I got claustrophobic it looked to cramped for me.
Comment from xennia


Beautiful summertime photo, you did a great job capturing those beautiful and cheerful colors. Composition is excellent too. I think that the lighting was too bright so you have lost some details here.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thanks for your kind review. To bright light? Thats maybe right. But what do you do against the bright light of the sun? [It's a problem in the tropics] I had a filter already and the light cover around the lens. A cloudy day it's better but then you haven't that many butterflies.
Comment from ahsanzia


This is a lovely photo with rich and vibrant colors and a very well representation of the beautiful summer weather. The contrast between the red flower and yellow butterflies is excellent. However the light seems a bit too bright and the focus is soft. I also feel that this could use some cropping to make a better composition. Overall well done and thanks for sharing.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you for your throughout review and your suggestions. I don't agree with the cropping. You may be right but I had several cropping done one almost exactly as you suggest. But it feel to cramped to me I got claustrophobic with it. It just loosed the free air look as if made in a butterfly farm and not in my garden.
    The light is another matter. What you see is a compromise. The bright light is a problem here in the tropics always. What do you do against the sun? I had already a filter and the light cover around the lens. It usually is better on cloudy days. I try not to shoot with cloudless sky's but these butterflies are uncooperative. There aren't so much on cloudy days,
reply by ahsanzia on 10-Sep-2008
    What filter did you use? Is it a circular polarizer? Cropping is your choice...mine was just a suggestion and you need not to agree :-) Cheers.
reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Actually I'm not quite sure but I think you could be right. The photo is made in 2005 and I don't remember everything I did. My notes wend with the hurricanes so did my filters. The camera got sandblasted in the winds. I'm using a whole new set now.
Comment from JohnWarringtonMcGill


It is a beautiful photo. The colors are very vivid. A nice contrast between the sulfur butterflies, the sky and the bright red flower. The front butterfly appears slightly out of focus compared to the middle one. Other than that, it is very nice.

This rating does not count towards story rating or author rank.
The highest and the lowest rating are not included in calculations.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you for your very kind review. You are right the front butterfly 'appears' out of focus. It isn't the focus. It is the light. The wings of the butterfly are reflecting it. There was to much light. [An ongoing problem in the tropics] I had to use a filter and the sun cover around the lens. Still it is flashing back from the front butterfly and the little leaf below it. But there is were we have to make a compromise. Nothing I know of I could have done then don't take the photo and that is a prise way to high. The unusual set of three butterflies with the two yellows flanking the white-gray. I had to take that.
Comment from Bec's art


At first glance I thought that the butterflies were part of the flower. I have enjoyed viewing this piece. Thank you for sharing.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you so much for your generous review.
Comment from L A Billingham


Fantastic picture. I love the colours. This picture is so alive and vibrant. The yellow wings against that red flower speak volumes. Love the Hans christian Andersen quote. Good composition and great focus. Good job.

 Comment Written 10-Sep-2008


reply by the author on 10-Sep-2008
    Thank you so much for your generous review.